[House  Bill,  No.  239. J 

HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES,  Novembor  29,  18G4.— 
Read  first  and  second  times,  and  made  special  order  after  Currency 
and  Tax  bills,  and  from  day  to  day,  and  ordered  to  be  printed. 

[By  Mr.  Chilton,  from  Committee  on  Judiciary] 


A.  BILL 

To  be  entitled  An  Act  to  organize  the  Supreme  Court. 

1  Sf.ction  I.    T/ie  To/jr^/Y^.^  of  fhc  Confederalr.  States  of  Ainerka  do 

2  cnad.  That  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  Confederate   States,  shall 

3  consist  of  the  Chief  Justice  and  four  associate  justices. 

1  Sec.  2,  The  Chief  Justice  shall  preside  over  the  court,  atjd. 

2  after  him,  the  associate  justices  shall  have  precedence  in  the 
S  order  of  the  dates  of  their  commissions,  and.  when  tho  dates  are 

4  the  same,  in  the  order  of  their  ages.     Three  of  the  justices  shftU 

5  constitute  a  quorum. 

1  Stc.  3.  The  Chief  Justice  shall  have  a  salary  of  eight  thou- 

2  sand  dollars,  and  each  of  the  associate  justices  a  salary  of  seven 

3  thousand    dollars    per   annum,  payable    quarterly    out   of    the 

4  treasury. 

1  Stc.  4.  Before  entering  on  the  duties  of  their  offices,  each  of 

2  said  justices  shall  take  an  oath  or  aflSrmation  to  support  the  Con- 

3  Btitution,  to  administer  justice  without  respect  to  persons,  to  do 


4  equal  right  to  the  poor  and  to  the   rich,  and  faithfully   and  im- 

5  partially  to  perform  and  discharge  all  the  duties  of  his  oflSco 

6  agreeably  to  the  Constitution  and  laws  of  the  Confederate  States, 

7  according  to  the  best  of  his  ability. 

1  Sec.  5.   The  Supreme  Court  shall  hold  two  sessions  annually  at 

2  the  seat    of  government,  one  session  commencing  on   the   first 

3  Monday  of  January,  and  another  commencing  on  the  first  Mon- 

4  day  of  June,  and  to  continue  until  the  business  is  disposed  of.     If 

5  less  than  a  quorum  attend  at  the  time  appointed,  any  one  of  the 

6  justices  being  present  may  adjourn  the  court  from  day  to  day 

7  until  a  quorum  be  convened,  or,  (after  ten  days,)  he  may  adjourn 

8  it  until  the  next  term,  and  he  may  make  any  order  touching  pro- 
9*  cess    returned  or  returnable  to  the  court,  or  a  cause  pending 

10  therein,  preparatory  to  the  hearing  thereof,  subject  to  revision 

11  and  reversal  by  the  court.     The  Chief  Justice  may,  at  any  time, 

12  call  a  special  session  of  the  court,  causing  notice  thereof  to  be 

13  given  by  a  weekly  publication,  for  three  weeks,  in  a  newspaper 

14  publishe  d  at  the  seat  of  government. 

1  Sec.  6.   The  laws,  applicable  to  the  Supreme  Court  established 

2  under  the  Pr(fvisional  Government,  shall  be  applicable  to  the 

3  court  hereby  organized,  so  far  as  the  same  are  consistent  with 

4  the  Constitution  and  this  act,  and  all  appeals  and  writs  of  error 

5  which  were  returnable  to  the  former  court  shall  be  returnable  to 

6  the  court  hereby  organized. 


s 

1  Sec.  7.  From    judgments    and  decrees    rendered  before    the 

2  secession  of  any  State,  in  any   court  held  therein,  appeals  and 

3  writs  of  error  shall  lie  to   the  court  hereby   organized  in   such 

4  cases  and  in  like  manner  as  the  same  lay  to  the  Supreme  Court 
3  of  the  United   States  before  the    secession,  notwithstanding  an 

6  appeal  or  writ  of  error  has  been  taken  to  the  latter  court  and  not 

7  dismissed  unless  the  cause  had  been  decided  by  that  court  before 

8  such  secession.     The  time  during  which  any  such  cause  may  have 

9  been  pending  in  that  court  shall  not  be  included  in  computing  the 
10  time  limited  for  taking  such  appeal  or  writ  of  error. 

1  Sec.  8.  In  all  cases  in  which  the  time  limited  for  taking  an 

2  appeal  or  writ  of  error  to  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States 

3  or  the  Confederate  States  has  expired  since  the  secession  of  the 

4  State  in  which  the  cause  was  determined  or  shall  expire  within 

5  two  years  from  this  date,  further  time  for  taking  the  same  shall 

6  be  allowed  until  the  expiration  of  two  years  after  the  passage  of 

7  this  act. 

1  Sec.  9    Except  in  cases  in  which  a  mandate  has  been  received 

2  by  a  district  court,  as  comtemplated  in  the  forty-ninth  section  of 

3  the  act  "  to  establish  the  judicial  courts  of  the  Confederate  States 

4  of  America,"  approved  March  16th,  1861,  all  decrees  and  judg- 

5  ments  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  rendered  before 

6  the  secession  of  a  State,  in  causes  orijrinally  determined  in  such 

7  State,  and  which  now  remain  in  force  and  not  executed,  may  be 


4 

8  carried  into  execution  as  if  they  were  judgments  of  the  court 

9  hereby  organized,  under  the  order,  direction  and  process  of  the 

10  Supreme  Court,  and  for  that  purpose,  if  necessary,  the  court  may 

1 1  cause  the  tenor,  substance  or  effect  of  such  judgment  and  decrees 

12  to  be  proved,  under  such  rules  as  it  may  establish,  as  in  case  of  a 

13  record  lost  or  destroyed,  and  upon  such  proof,  if  sufficient,  may 

14  cause  any  such  judgment  or  decree  to  be  carried  into  execution^ 

15  as  aforesaid 


